Skulduggery POV

Skulduggery watched her sleep. It wasn't the first time he'd done it, or the last. He'd do it usually when he couldn't meditate. He'd just climb into her bedroom and watch her. He found that she always looked peaceful and at ease, so, naturally, it helped him to relax. Sometimes he'd just do it because he wanted to. He'd often hear her mumble in her sleep, mostly about him, or Fletcher, or sometimes Caelan. He'd always leave before she woke up, and never told her he'd been there. He didn't want her thinking less of him.

Skulduggery had been watching her for hours and he looked up as he heard her groan. He stayed sat on the desk chair, cross legged. She opened her eyes and rubbed them, and he watched her frown as she looked at the blanket that was over her. She sat up and pushed the blanket away from her. She turned her head slowly and lurched backwards, as she saw Skulduggery sat at her desk across the room.

"You absolute-" Valkyrie began.

"Wonderful person?" Skulduggery answered. Valkyrie scowled at him.

"No. You're an annoyance." she replied gruffly, moving from her bed. "Why're you here anyway?"

"I can always leave-" Skulduggery said, getting up from the chair.

"No," Valkyrie said, turning around quickly to make sure he wasn't leaving. If he had lips, he would be grinning. "I was just wondering. That's all"

"I'm just here because, well, we need to-"

"Tell me I was right about Ghastly and Tanith?" Valkyrie asked, pulling on a cardigan and turning to face him.

"No, well yes, you were right, but that's not why I'm here. I need to.. ask you something."

"Okay. Shoot." Valkyrie said, sitting back on her bed. Skulduggery stayed silent for a moment, and Valkyrie looked at him. "Is this about China?"

Skulduggery's head shot up. "What?"

"Well," she said slowly "you just seem a lot more, affectionate, towards her nowadays." Skulduggery faltered.

"I-I do?" he replied.

"Yeah! I mean, don't get me wrong, it's pretty cute and everything but-"

"But?" Skulduggery pressed on, sitting up. Valkyrie looked at him, his empty eye sockets looking back at her. She lowered her gaze. Skulduggery was eager to hear her response.

"But," she said again "She killed your family." Skulduggery sank in the chair and Valkyrie looked at him with sad eyes. "I'm sorry I mentioned it. I know you don't like it when I talk about it but-"

"No, no. It's not that." he said and Valkyrie frowned.

"Then what is it?" Skulduggery looked at her and tapped the symbols on his neck. His facade rose up over his skull and Valkyrie shook her head at the man with the dark hair and deep brown eyes. "You know I don't like it when you talk to me with that on." Skulduggery nodded and tapped the symbols again, and the facade retracted. He stared at her with his hollow eyes.

"I think I've known for quite a while now, but never really thought into it. I always thought it was stupid and it'd never happen, but it was always playing in the back of my mind. And being here, today, I've just realised what it was the whole time." Skulduggery paced back and forth whilst Valkyrie was frowning. "I didn't know when or how to tell you, or even mention it to you, because I was just scared. And it scared me the most to think that you wouldn't ever feel the same way I do. I was afraid I'd lose you to someone else, and I could never live with that. Whenever I saw you with Fletcher I just died a little bit more. I knew you would both end up together at some point which was why I tried to get rid of him, but you were persistent that he stayed, and I just-"

"Skulduggery-" Valkyrie began.

"Just, let me finish. You have grown into the woman I always knew you would. You're my best friend, my partner, my little girl, and the thought of losing you to someone kills me. So I just wanted to let you know that I-"

Valkyrie POV

Valkyrie jumped from her bed and walked up to Skulduggery. This four hundred year old skeleton, who'd never shown much affection to anyone, had just shown her the biggest amount of affection she'd ever thought she would hear from him. His empty eye sockets looked down at her and her glossy, dark eyes filled with tears. Valkyrie didn't know what to do. She didn't know what to feel. Had her best friend just told her he loved her? This man who was known to have showed no emotion to anyone after his wife and child were brutally murdered. Neither of them moved. Valkyrie tilted her head so she could see the symbols carved into Skulduggery's neck. She tapped them and the facade of the dark haired man with the deep brown eyes rose up over his skull. She liked looking into his human eyes, but she also liked looking into the eyes of his skull, into oblivion.

"I haven't done this, in over four hundred years." Skulduggery said softly. Valkyrie's breathing became rapid and heavy as Skulduggery leaned into her. Her lips slowly parted as his new, fresh lips touched hers. She felt as if she was falling, a never ending drop. She moved into him, her shaky hands finding his face. It felt strange to her as she touched his dewy skin. It became apparent that neither of them were intending to pull away as Skulduggery wrapped his arms around her back, moving in with her. Valkyrie stumbled backwards, taking Skulduggery with her, but neither of them let go. Valkyrie fell onto her bed and Skulduggery fell with her. She couldn't tell if she was enjoying this moment she'd always longed for, or found it insanely awkward. She still didn't let go of him, even with those thoughts flooding through her mind. They rolled over and Valkyrie was sat on him, as Skulduggery sat up. Valkyrie kept her hands on his face as she pulled back, just staring into Skulduggery's eyes. Neither of them spoke.

"Well," he said finally. "That went more than I expected."

"It usually does." Valkyrie replied softly, and he leaned in and kissed her again.